Virtually Useless: The Dangers of DIY Plans

When it comes to estate planning, one of the misconceptions I hear, time and time again, is that people think it is about having the right “forms.” However, the reality is that the documents you use are only as good as the information and understanding your lawyer has about YOU; it is about your family, your goals, what you own and how the law will apply to your situation upon your death or incapacity. Relying on DIY forms or online estate planning sites can be one of the costliest mistakes you can make for your loved ones. You need far more than just a few fill-in-the-blank documents to properly address all of those complexities.  

Without a thorough understanding of your family, your assets, and how the legal process works upon your death or incapacity, you are likely to make serious mistakes when creating a DIY estate plan. What is even worse is that these mistakes likely will not be discovered until it’s too late and you are long gone—and your loved ones you that you wanted to protect will be the very ones forced to clean up your mess or get stuck in a costly, time consuming, energy-draining, and possibly traumatic court process that can drag out for months or even years.  

Now you and I both know that want things to be as simple as possible for the people you love when something happens to you, you need a trusted attorney; an attorney who can prepare an estate plan that will work for you and your family with a minimum amount of stress and conflict for those loved ones you leave behind, not just some forms you think might work.

In part one of this series, we covered the first two ways DIY estate plans can fail. Here, we’ll cover the three more.

Number 3. Choosing the Wrong Executors or Trustees  

State law varies from state to state. Each state has very specific laws about who can be the personal representative (used to be called the executor), trustee, or agent of financial power of attorney. In some states, for example, the personal representative of your will must either be a family member or an in-law and if not, the person must live in your state. If your chosen personal representative doesn’t meet those requirements, he or she cannot serve. 

Furthermore, some states require the person you name as your personal representative must take out and pay for a bond, which is like an insurance policy before they can serve. Such bonds can be difficult to get for someone who has a less-than-stellar credit score. If your personal representative cannot get a bond, it would be up to the court to appoint someone else to be your personal representative, which could end up being someone you never want to be involved in your legal matters; or the court could appoint a third-party professional, who could drain your estate with costly fees. 

Number 4. Lost and Unclaimed Assets 

Unless your family knows exactly what assets you own and how to locate and access those assets, that property is as good as gone when you die—and your online will won’t be of any use to your family. In fact, there’s currently more than $50 billion worth of unclaimed property sitting in the different state Departments of Unclaimed Property across the U.S. because a family member died and their loved ones lost track of their assets. 

To ensure that none of your assets end up in our state’s Department of Unclaimed Property, and your family will know exactly what you have and how to find everything if something happens to you, it’s essential that you keep a regularly updated inventory of all your assets. As your Personal Family Lawyer®, we will not only help you create a comprehensive asset inventory, we’ll make sure it stays regularly updated throughout your lifetime.  

Number 5. Unforeseen Conflict Between Family Members 

Family dynamics are—to put it lightly—quite complex. This is particularly true for blended families, where spouses have children from previous relationships. DIY forms nor online DIY  services do NOT help you consider the many potential areas where conflict might arise or help you plan ahead of time to avoid such disputes. Even the best set of forms may not be able to anticipate and navigate these complex matters—but Cris Carter is trained to recognize and solve the “what if” problems that you don’t even know to consider.

In my line of work, unfortunately, I see families ripped apart due to poor estate planning. The flip side is that I also see families brought closer together as a result of handling these matters the right way. When done right, the estate planning process is a huge opportunity to build new and meaningful connections within your family. and our lawyers are specifically trained to help you with that. Cris Carter is trained to help you through the challenges and guide you to put a plan in place that considers all possibilities.

Preventing family conflict with proactive estate planning is our special sauce and one of the primary reasons to work with us, rather than relying on DIY planning documents. 

Get The Kind Of Planning Your Family Deserves 

Ultimately, we’ve discovered that estate planning is about far more than planning for your death and passing on your “estate” to your loved ones—it’s about planning for a life you love and a legacy worth leaving by the choices you make today—and this is why we call our services Life & Legacy Planning.  

We are specifically trained to educate, empower, and support you to make the right decisions for the people you love and get to know what matters most to you. Furthermore, because your plan is designed to protect and provide for your loved ones in the event of your death or incapacity, we aren’t just here to serve you—we’re here to serve your entire family.  

If you’ve yet to do any planning, contact us to schedule a Life & Legacy Planning Session, which is the first step in our Life & Legacy Planning Process.

While the DIY approach might be a good idea if you’re looking to build a new deck for your backyard, when it comes to estate planning, it’s one of the worst choices you can make. Are you willing to put your family’s well-being and wealth at risk just to save a few bucks? If you want to truly do right by those you love, contact us, to get your Life & Legacy Plan started today.